Monster Hunting 401: A LitRPG Fantasy Adventure by Andrew Karevik (best books to read txt) 📕

the shell off, making the creature wobble even more. I hobbled to the left, towards the tree where Eckshaw was hiding.

“What are you doing? Get in there,” I said. “We need all hands on deck for something that big!”

“Are you not monster hunters? Handle this yourselves,” Eckshaw said, his voice stiff and disjointed.

I fired a few more shots, allowing each arrow to either go wide or hit non-vital areas. “My legs screwed up, I can’t do my usual thing of leaping around,” I said. Certainly not a lie. My dodging out of the way of that first attack had actually torn quite a bit of tissue in my knee.

Another explosion rocked the creature as Trig once again delivered his payload with ease, scurrying up one of the creature’s hind legs and throwing the bombs beneath the beast. The force of the attack caused the great crab to lurch forward a few steps.

“The wagon!” I shouted as I clambered to the Stabwagon, pushing it backwards with both hands, barely able to shove it out of the way as one of the hind legs came crashing down. Dirt kicked up from the force of the strike and I was blinded for a second.

One second was all it took, for one moment I was on the ground, the next I was in the air, seized by the deceptively long arms of the beast. It had hidden the true length of its pincers, opting to simply jut them forward a few feet out. In truth, these claws were just as long as the legs, though able to fold back with double joints.

The pincers closed around my torso tightly, trying to crush the life out of me.

“Help! Help!” came a shout to my left as I struggled to catch my bearings. The crab had lifted me in the air and was trying to cut me in half, but my reinforced armor wasn’t giving, leaving the creature to continue trying, without an understanding of why a little human wouldn’t die.

In the other claw of the beast was Eckshaw, squirming and trying to get free. His armor wasn’t as well-crafted as mine, slowly bending and warping as the beast continued to apply steady pressure. He punched his fists fruitlessly against the claw, unable to do anything other than squirm.

My bow had already appeared in my hands. I saw the joint of the crab beast, plain as day. Shooting it would be easy at this range, especially since the creature wasn’t moving the limbs up and down, focusing instead on just applying more force. I aimed at the joint of the beast and took a deep breath. I had to be a hair away from striking the actual joint, close enough to where the creature dwelling inside the mind of the man believed that I was trying to free him.

A terrible twinge of guilt and horror rose up through me as I lined up the shot. The young nurse, the idealistic girl who had become a healer in the hopes of saving people’s lives, begged me to reconsider. To treat this man’s life as sacred. But…the hunter ignored the voice of that girl. I fired the shot perfectly, striking the outer carapace, breaking off a piece of armor, but otherwise doing no lasting damage.

“It’s no use, that’s—” I shouted, but a hideous squelching sound, followed by a blood-curdling scream interrupted me. I glanced over, quickly as I could, to confirm that the man had been chopped in half. The crab beast paid no mind to the death of Eckshaw and merely released what was left of the body, not interested in feasting, only interested in killing.

I swallowed hard, turned to face the exposed brain of the creature and fired three shots, killing it instantly. It didn’t even have a chance to blink. We were free of the Eldest’s eye for now, but at what cost?

Chapter 28

I landed on the ground, feeling my stomach gurgle. A certain kind of nausea came over me, the kind of queasiness that only guilt could produce. But I had to push those feelings away, like any other feelings I had in the heat of battle. I made my decision, I had to stand by it.

Trig was already atop me, prying the pincer open to set me free. His face was white as a ghost. That old look in his eyes came back, the sorrow and fear intermingled together. Could he ever forgive me for what I had done?

“Good call,” he muttered. “I was scared you weren’t picking up on the plan.”

And there it was. He had come to the same conclusion as I, without ever sharing a word. No wonder his last attack had targeted a different part of the body, instead of the exposed brain.

“Was this the right decision?” I said, staggering over to the wagon. Time was of the essence here. Who knows how long it would take the Eldest to track us down?

“Objectively? Yes,” Trig said. “But it’s not the kind of thing we mention. To anyone. Ever.”

I nodded at that. “Right, right. Okay, we need to focus. Eckshaw’s sacrifice gives us some time.”

“Sacrifice,” Trig chuckled. “Let’s not get too hasty to add that to the title. For all we know, the guy could have sold out his people and was working happily in exchange for safety. I mean, he was one of the few who could wear armor, right? What if the whole Shamed thing was because he was selling everyone out?”

“Enough, we need to focus,” I shot back. It was interesting that while I took a more positive approach, believing that Eckshaw would have done this to save his people, Trig assumed a more sinister reason. I guess our own justifications would be in line with how we viewed the world. But now was not the time for a half-empty, half-full discussion. We had a village to save.

“First off, take this disgusting charm and wear it,” I said, throwing him the squishy bracelet. “It’s